Are SUVs safer?

[gflores]

I know one of the biggest reasons people purchase an SUV is to feel safer and "higher up" when they're driving. Is this true? Are suvs generally safer? Or is this just a misperception?

 

[Jetblade]

SUVs turn over easier.

 

[PatboyX]

only for the people in them. actually, i feel like they could be if you knew what you were doing. but its a needlessly large vehicle and, as such, i think a lot of people who get behind the wheel may not be able to drive it as easily and well as other vehicles. other than that along with the horror stories about flipping over, etc, im not sure how much less safe it would be than any other vehicle.
i think most of the danger lies in the behavior of the drivers who feel that they are either 1. safer and can drive slightly more lax or 2. in a larger car so they can drive how they want. im not sure its concious but if i bought a car and felt super-safe in it, i may start driving with abandon.

 

[Chaotic42]

I'd put money down that the HMMWV is safer that most anything on the road. Especially with the .50 cal sunroof option.

 

[AU Tiger]

Size is one of the key reason people believe they are safer. They are safer as long as you don't run into anything larger and don't take any fast turns. They are more dangerous to drivers in sedans, etc.

 

[Regs]

I crashed into one, I don't think they are safer. They are however deadlier because they are built like battering rams.

 

[m2kewl]

no.

there are no safe cars for stupid drivers.

 

[Ornery]

Shopping For a Safe Car

• Vehicle size and weight
  
  The laws of physics dictate that larger and heavier cars are safer than lighter and smaller ones. Small cars have twice as many occupant deaths each year as large cars. In crashes involving smaller and larger vehicles, heavier vehicles drive lighter ones backwards, decreasing the forces inside the heavier car and increasing them in the lighter car.

Why can't I compare vehicles from different categories?

• The kinetic energy a vehicle must absorb in a crash test increases with vehicle weight, so barrier tests are more demanding of heavier vehicles. But people in heavier vehicles in real-world, 2-vehicle crashes typically fare better than people in lighter vehicles (in many single-vehicle crashes, weight offers no safety advantage). This is why test results shouldn't be compared among vehicles with large weight differences.

SHOPPING FOR A SAFER CAR

• ...Vehicle weight protects you principally in two-vehicle crashes. In a head-on crash, for example, the heavier vehicle drives the lighter one backwards, which decreases forces inside the heavy vehicle and increases forces in the lighter one. All heavy vehicles, even poorly designed ones, offer this advantage in two-vehicle collisions but may not offer good protection in single-vehicle crashes.
  
  All else being equal, you're safer traveling in a passenger vehicle that's larger and heavier than in one that's smaller and lighter.

 

[rh71]

No, they're not safer because they are more likely to flip over than a vehicle with a lower center of gravity.

Yes, they are safer in terms of mass vs. a smaller vehicle in a head-on-type of collision (which can be very bad for the other car).

<-- SUV driver who bought it because of practicality for his lifestyle.

 

[goblue420]

I think so, well I just feel safer being up higher and being in a bigger vehicle in my Explorer which by the way is a GREAT vehicle.

 

[Ynog]

They definately have a higher chance of roll over.

Another thing, while comparing offset crash tests and other head on crash tests
some SUVs, when involved in that crash, the front of the car doesn't crumple that
easy. So the passenger compartment takes the force and started to crumple.

Now if you plow through a Jetta you will probably be ok. But if you hit another
SUV. Well there is were the problems is going to arise